--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: 'Ape House' is an ambitious novel in…" description: "\"'Ape House' is an ambitious novel in several ways, for which it is to be admired, and it is certainly an easy read, but because Gruen is not quite prep..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5c8/jane-smiley-2120_ambitious_ape-house-is-an-ambitious-novel-in-sever_823585.jpg" --- # 'Ape House' is an ambitious novel in several ways, for… ![“'Ape House' is an ambitious novel in several ways, for which it is to be admired, and it is certainly an easy read, but because Gruen is not quite prepared for the philosophical implications of her subject, it is not as deeply involving emotionally or as interesting thematically as it could be.” quote by Jane Smiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5c8/jane-smiley-2120_ambitious_ape-house-is-an-ambitious-novel-in-sever_823585.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5c8/jane-smiley-2120_ambitious_ape-house-is-an-ambitious-novel-in-sever_823585.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5c8/jane-smiley-2120_ambitious_ape-house-is-an-ambitious-novel-in-sever_823585.jpg) > “'Ape House' is an ambitious novel in several ways, for which it is to be admired, and it is certainly an easy read, but because Gruen is not quite prepared for the philosophical implications of her subject, it is not as deeply involving emotionally or as interesting thematically as it could be.” [Jane Smiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-smiley/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The novel is praised for ambition and readability but lacks emotional depth and thematic richness due to insufficient philosophical engagement. **In simple terms:** Good but shallow. Key Takeaway Deepen philosophical themes. Themes literature critical review novel Mood thoughtful analytical Type critical review When to use this quote - book clubs - literary criticism - author interviews - reading groups Key Concepts narrative depth philosophical context Questions to Reflect On - What philosophical ideas could enrich the story? - How does emotional depth affect reader engagement? A Different Perspective Readers may miss emotional connection without deeper insight. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ambitious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ambitious/) [Ambitious Novel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ambitious-novel-494862/) [Apes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/apes/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Easy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/easy/) [Emotionally Interesting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/emotionally-interesting-494865/) [House](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/house/) [House Ambitious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/house-ambitious-494864/) [Implications](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/implications/) [Interesting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/interesting/) [Interesting Thematically](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/interesting-thematically-494863/) [Involving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/involving/) [Novel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novel/) [Philosophical](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophical/) [Prepared](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prepared/) [Subject](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/subject/) [Subjects](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/subjects/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) ## Related quotes > [All people are meant to be creative in a certain way. 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Wright lived into his 90s, and one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-smiley/there-are-hundreds-of-frank-lloyd-wright-buildings-around-the-united/) [Jane Smiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-smiley/) [Explore all 185 Jane Smiley quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-smiley/) ## More Ambitious quotes > [I'm hungry and ambitious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julen-lopetegui/i-m-hungry-and-ambitious/) [Julen Lopetegui](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julen-lopetegui/) > [I want my squad to be confident, ambitious. They have to believe in big things and we have to set targets internally.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-howe/i-want-my-squad-to-be-confident-ambitious-they-have-to-believe-in-big/) [Eddie Howe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-howe/) > [I almost never have a plan for myself... I'm not ambitious in that way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-plimpton/i-almost-never-have-a-plan-for-myself-i-m-not-ambitious-in-that-way/) [Martha Plimpton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-plimpton/) > [“Getting rich is easy, staying rich is impressive.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-trip/getting-rich-is-easy-staying-rich-is-impressive/) [Don Trip](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-trip/) > [Trying to be perfect may be inevitable for people who are smart and ambitious and interested in the world and its good opinion...What is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/trying-to-be-perfect-may-be-inevitable-for-people-who-are-smart-and/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [Business is always a struggle. There are always obstacles and competitors. 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The fools are the happiest.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hippolyte-taine/there-are-four-varieties-in-society-the-lovers-the-ambitious/) [Hippolyte Taine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hippolyte-taine/) > [People who are ambitious - politicians who crave power - think that they're in control of it, but at some point, the movement that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-liu/people-who-are-ambitious-politicians-who-crave-power-think-that-they/) [Ken Liu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-liu/) > [I'm not ambitious. Not a bit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/indira-gandhi/i-m-not-ambitious-not-a-bit/) [Indira Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/indira-gandhi/) > [Aggressive and hard-charging women violate unwritten rules about acceptable social conduct. Men are continually applauded for being ambitious and powerful and successful, but women…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheryl-sandberg/aggressive-and-hard-charging-women-violate-unwritten-rules-about/) [Sheryl Sandberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheryl-sandberg/) > [I understood early on that I was not the best-looking girl in the room. But I knew my advantage was a hard work ethic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erin-o-connor/i-understood-early-on-that-i-was-not-the-best-looking-girl-in-the/) [Erin O'Connor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erin-o-connor/) > [It is ordained that to the ambitious, who derive no satisfaction from the gifts of life and the beauty of the world, life shall…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-da-vinci/it-is-ordained-that-to-the-ambitious-who-derive-no-satisfaction-from/) [Leonardo da Vinci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-da-vinci/) > [If Reagan and John Paul II were linked by anything, it was a grand, ambitious, and generous idea of Western political civilization, one in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-applebaum/if-reagan-and-john-paul-ii-were-linked-by-anything-it-was-a-grand/) [Anne Applebaum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-applebaum/) > [To talk only about national security, national defense, means to be selfish, ambitious. It is discrimination, isolation. "It is just me. What do I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evo-morales/to-talk-only-about-national-security-national-defense-means-to-be/) [Evo Morales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evo-morales/) [Browse all 1,269 Ambitious quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ambitious/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "'Ape House' is an ambitious novel in several ways, for which it is to be admired, and it is certainly an easy read, but because Gruen is not quite prepared for the philosophical implications of her subject, it is not as deeply involving emotionally or as interesting thematically as it could be.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Jane Smiley" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-smiley/ape-house-is-an-ambitious-novel-in-several-ways-for-which-it-is-to-be/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Ambitious" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-smiley/ape-house-is-an-ambitious-novel-in-several-ways-for-which-it-is-to-be/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5c8/jane-smiley-2120_ambitious_ape-house-is-an-ambitious-novel-in-sever_823585.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5c8/jane-smiley-2120_ambitious_ape-house-is-an-ambitious-novel-in-sever_823585.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5c8/jane-smiley-2120_ambitious_ape-house-is-an-ambitious-novel-in-sever_823585.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“'Ape House' is an ambitious novel in several ways, for which it is to be admired, and it is certainly an…” — Jane Smiley", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Jane Smiley", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-smiley/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "'Ape House' is an ambitious novel...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-smiley/ape-house-is-an-ambitious-novel-in-several-ways-for-which-it-is-to-be/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-smiley/ape-house-is-an-ambitious-novel-in-several-ways-for-which-it-is-to-be/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```